Apparatus for separating fluids



Jan. 14, 1941. I 'H DQRAN 2,228,816

APPARATUS FOR SEPARATING FLUIDS Filed Jan. 5, 1939 llllllllllllllllllllll Inventor'. John |1. OT-aum Patented Jan. 14, 1941 UNITED STATS @TENT GFFICE John H. Doran, Scotia, N. Y., assigner to General Electric Company, a corporation of New York Appiication January 5, 1939, Serial No. 249,466

Claims.

The present invention relates to apparatus for separating fluids and more particularly to apparatus for separating hydrogen gas from lubricating oils.

Hydrogen gas is frequently used in the cooling of rotating electrical machinery, such as gen-` erators. Some of the gas becomes admixed with the lubricating oil cir-culated through the bearings of the machine. The oil discharged from the bearings is generally in the form of a froth due to the large amount of hydrogen contained therein. Before the lubricating oil can be recirculated, the hydrogen gas must be separated therefrom. Because of the expense and the attendant dangers, it is undesirable to release the gas to atmosphere after it is extracted but to reintroduce it into the cooling system.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an extremely simple and efiicient apparatus for separating admixed gases from oils.

For a consideration of what I believe to be novel and my invention, attention is directed to the following description and the claims appended thereto taken in connection with the accompanying drawing. 1

The single gure of the drawing is a crosssectional View through the separating apparatus embodying my invention, in which ID is a horizontally disposed rotatable element Within which the separation of the mixture takesplace. The rotatable element comprises a central tubular member or drum I I, the right end or inlet thereof being provided with a diametrically extending wall I2 secured to the member il as by welds I3 :i5 and brackets I4. The closure for the inlet end of the rotatable element includes a cylindrical portion I5, an end wall I6 and an axially extending sleeve portion Il. This end unit is suitably secured by a flange I8 to an outwardly extending io portion I9 of the wall I2. This end of the rotatable element is supported in a suitable bearing 20 provided between the sleeve i1 and the stationary support 2|. A prime mover (not shown) is arranged for driving the rotatable ele- 5 ment through a gear 22 mounted for engagement with a pinion or gear 23 fixed on the end of the sleeve Il. The mixture to `be separated is introduced into the rotatable element through the conduit 24 axially centered within the sleeve il annular chamber 28 therebetween. Secured to the wall I2 as by bolts 29 is a member 30 having an offset and outwardly extending disk portion 3| which extends into the annular channel 32 formed by the portions 25, 26 and 21 of the sta- 5 tionary admission conduit 24. The member 30 may be sectored as indicated to facilitate the assembly thereof. The mixture to be separated, iovving through conduit 2t, passes into the annular channel 32 and around the peripheral edge l0 of the disk 3I. The mixture overflowing the inner edge of the rim 2, fills thev annular chamber 28, and due to the speed of rotation of the member I9 the mixture is retained therein, eiecting a liquid seal between the interior of the separator 15 and the atmosphere.' The wall I2 is provided with a series of openings 33 through which the mixture may pass into the interior of drum II. The openings 33 are so spaced in the wall I2 inwardly from the wall of the drum I I fo-r limiting 20 the depth of liquid in the chamber 28 so that no liquid or mixture will escape through the clearance between the conduit 2d and the sleeve Il' during the operation of Ithe separator. The rotating disk 3I will maintain the entire channel 25 32 iilled with the mixture to effect a substantially gas tight seal between the interior of the conduit 24 and the interior of the drum I i Depending upon the consistency of the mixture, it may be desirable to provide uns 34 on the disk sur- 30 faces to assist in carrying mixture into the upper portion of the channel 32. The mixture spilling into the interior of the drum through the openings 33 is caught by the brackets IG which, acting as vanes, insure the mix-ture being given a ro- 35 tational velocity equal to that of the drum. The mixture spreads itself over the inner surface of the drum and, due to the centrifugal force, is compressed thereagainst and the occluded gas expelled from the mixture.

Means are provided for separately withdrawing the liquid and gaseous components of the mixture from the rotatable element. The left or outlet end of the tubular member II is provided with an outwardly extending Wall portion 31, a cylindrical portion 38 having a ange 39 to which is secured the end wall 49. The portions 38, 39 and the end wall 49 denne an annular chamber @I having a diameter somewhat larger than that of the drum I I. The end wall is provided with a 50 central aperture and an outwardly extending sleeve i2 concentric with the axis of rotation. This end of the rotatable member is suitably supported as by bearing 43 mounted in the stationary housing wall 44. The conduit G5, axially arranged within the sleeve 42, extends into the rotatable element and is provided with an outwardly extending disk or flange portion 41, the periphery of which extends into the chamber 4|. The end wall 4U is provided with a plurality of outlet openings 48 through which the liquid is discharged into the surrounding receiver or housing. The openings are spaced` uniformly inwardly with regard to the outer wall of the chamber 4| so that a substantial portion of the chamber is maintained iilled with liquid during the rotation of the drum. Since the outer edge of the disk 41 extends into the liquid filled chamber to a depth below the openings 43, a substantially gas tight liquid seal is eiiected between the interior and exterior of the drum at this end as well as at the inlet end. A suitable vacuum pump (not shown) may be connected to the conduit 45 for removing the gas from the separator drum and returning it to the storage reservoir. By maintaining the pressure within the cylinder less than atmospheric, the vacuum pump materially aids in extracting the hydrogen from the liquid.

The stationary housing surrounding the left end of the rotatable unit comprises, in addition to the wall 44, a secondwall 49 which is flanged as at 50 and to which is suitably secured a third wall For precluding leakage of oil between the wall 5| and the drum a slinger 52 is arranged within a surrounding catcher 53 which is drained through the opening 54 into the lower portion of the housing. The collar 55 secured around the conduit 45 and to the housing wall 44 precludes the leakage of liquid past the bearing 43 to atmosphere. The liquid is drained from the housing through conduit 56 which is in communication with the lower portion of the housing.

With the arrangement described, it will be noted that no other packings are required for preventing the leakage of either of the mixture constituents to atmosphere. 'I'he mixture or the liquid flowing through the inlet and outlet passages effects substantially gas tight seals between the atmosphere and the interior of the drum. The arrangement, due to the lack of solid packings, is very free running and requires but a relatively small driving motor.

While I have shown the extraction drum as being mounted for rotation about a horizontal axis, it is obvious that it may be arranged for vertical operation, or at any other suitable angle.

Thus, with my invention I have provided an improved apparatus for separating a mixture of gas and liquid. My invention is especially advantageous as a liquid de-gasifying apparatus. The apparatus as described above broadly includes a rotatable drum with an end portion |1 reduced in diameter` A stationary supply conduit 24 projects into the end portion of the drum and carries a sealing cup 25, 26, 21 which is located in an annular chamber formed by the inlet portion of the drum. A deflector 3| secured to the drum I projects into the sealing cup. Brackets I4 are secured to the inner surface of the drum near the deector and impart rotary motion to the liquid supplied to the drum. This rotary motion together with the centrifugal action to which the liquid is subjected during rotation of the drum causes gases entrapped in the liquid to be freed. 'I'hese gases escape towards the central portion of the drum.

Having described the principle of operation of my invention together with the apparatus which I now consider to represent the best embodiment thereof, I desire to have it understood that the apparatus shown is only illustrative and that the invention may be carried out by other means.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. Apparatus for separating the component elements of a mixture having gaseous and liquid constituents which apparatus comprises a horizontally disposed cylindrical element, bearings for rotatably supporting said element, a pair of spaced apart walls at the inlet end of said element, the outer of said walls having a centrally disposed aperture therein, an axially arranged conduit extending through said aperture for introducing the mixture into said cylindrical element, passages through the inner of said pair of walls spaced diametrlcally greater than the diameter of said outer wall aperture and less than the diameter of said cylindrical element, a member dening an annular channel secured to the end of said conduit extending into the space between said pair of walls, the outer diameter of said channel being slightly less than the inner diameter of said cylindrical element whereby the mixture being introduced into said cylindrical element fills the space between said channel and said pair of walls to the depth of said passages forming a gas tight seal between the interior of said element and the exterior thereof, a disk secured to said inner wall and extending into said annular channel whereby a substantially gas tight seal is formed closing ofi' the interior of said element from said conduit.

2. Apparatus for separating the component elements of a mixture having gaseous and liquid constituents which apparatus comprises a hollow rotatable body, a partition within said body, means for rotating said body, a stationary conduit extending axially int one end of said body for introducing the mixture into said body, means including an element secured to the conduit and forming an annular groove and a vane secured to the body and projecting into the groove for retaining some liquid of the mixture introduced into said body between the element and the vane to effect a substantially gas tight seal between the interior of the body and the interior of said stationary conduit, said element being in spaced relation to said drum and said partition to form a second gas tight seal, a stationary conduit extending axially into the other end of said body for withdrawing the gaseous constituent therefrom, means for withdrawing the liquid constituent from said body, and means associated with the last named means to form a gastight seal between the interior of said body and the atmosphere.

3. Liquid de-gasifying apparatus comprising a hollow rotatable drum having an end portion reduced in diameter, a partition within said drum, a stationary supply conduit projecting centrally into the end portion, a sealing cup forming an annular groove being secured to the supply conduit, a deector secured to said drum, said sealing cup being in spaced relation to said drum and partition and also to said deector to form a double seal.

4. Liquid de-gasifying apparatus comprising a hollow rotatable drum having an end portion reduced in diameter, apartition within said drum, a stationary supply conduit projecting centrally into the end portion, a sealing cup forming an annular groove being secured to the supply conduit, a deflector secured to said drum and projecting into the groove of the sealing cup, means adjacent the deector and secured to the drum to impart rotary motion to the liquid supplied to the drum, the sealing cup and the deflector forming an annular liquid seal during operation and the sealing cup being in spaced relation to the drum and the partition to form another annular liquid seal during operation.

5. Liquid de-gasifying apparatus comprising a hollow rotatable drum having an inlet portion dening an annular chamber with a wall having w openings radially spaced from the inner surface of the drum, a stationary supply conduit with a sealing cup forming an annular groove being located in the annular chamber, and a deector secured to the central portion of the wall and projecting into the groove of the sealing cup, the cup and the deflector forming a liquid seal during operation and the cup and the adjacent wall of the chamber forming another liquid seal during operation.

JOHN H. DORAN. 

